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Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Review | Theatre | Earthquakes in London | Cottesloe | Michael Billington by Michael Billington

Cottesloe, LondonWith plays such as My Child and Contractions, Mike Bartlett has established a reputation as a theatrical miniaturist. Now he has written a big, epic, expansive play about cl…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:42AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, October 3, 2017

Labour of Love review " James Graham's witty take on party's thorny past by Michael Billington

Noël Coward theatre, London Martin Freeman and Tamsin Greig give sparkling performances as a reforming MP and his constituency agent fighting through Labour's fluctuating fortunes James G…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:54PM[SHARE]
Monday, October 2, 2017

B review " Guillermo Calderón unmasks the motives behind political protest by Michael Billington

Royal Court, LondonThe Chilean dramatist's new show about urban violence explores the tensions between two young anarchists and a veteran bomb-makerThe Royal Court's international programme,…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:36PM[SHARE]

Peter Brook: 'To give way to despair is the ultimate cop-out' by Michael Billington

At 92, the visionary director refuses to slow down. He talks about how to silence audiences, the trouble with doing Shakespeare in French, the difference between Olivier and Gielgud, and why…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:12PM[SHARE]
Sunday, October 1, 2017

King Lear - review by Michael Billington

Olivier, LondonSimon Russell Beale is magnetic and unorthodox in an exceptional production that mixes the epic and the intimateAnother day, another Lear. But, although this is the third prod…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:04PM[SHARE]

King Lear review " Ian McKellen delivers a profound portrait of a soul in torment by Michael Billington

Minerva, ChichesterJonathan Munby's smart, lucid production features plenty of pomp and circumstance, and a superbly detailed performance by McKellenIan McKellen knows his way round Lear. He…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:06AM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 28, 2017

After the Rehearsal/Persona review " Bergman double bill storms on to stage by Michael Billington

Barbican, LondonThe Swedish auteur's tales of actors are directed by Ivo van Hove at his most lucid and ostentatious, featuring fine performances and a pulsating tempest****/***'Can you be t…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:18AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Kwame Kwei-Armah: multi-talented dynamo is perfect fit for the Young Vic by Michael Billington

The surefire playwright, director and actor is an inspired choice as the Young Vic's new artistic director " he has proved himself time and againThe appointment of Kwame Kwei-Armah as the ne…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:12PM[SHARE]

Le Grand Mort " Julian Clary slices and dices through tale of death, sex and veg by Michael Billington

Trafalgar Studios, LondonStephen Clark's puzzling drama about a man planning to either seduce or murder his dinner guest comes across as both morbid and exploitativeSex and death are the the…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:12AM[SHARE]
Monday, September 25, 2017

Ramona Tells Jim review " hapless romance among the hermit crabs by Michael Billington

Bush theatre, LondonThe Scottish coast is the setting for Sophie Wu's witty play about crustacean-loving Jim, his girlfriend and his kooky exLike many actors who turn to writing, Sophie Wu h…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:04AM[SHARE]
Saturday, September 23, 2017

Coriolanus/Dido, Queen of Carthage review " Shakespeare and Marlowe do battle by Michael Billington

Royal Shakespeare theatre/The Swan, Stratford-upon-Avon This well-matched pair of tragedies in the RSC's Rome season give us strong images, unforgettable lines, probing psychology " and a lo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:54AM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 21, 2017

Ben Hur Live | theatre review | by Michael Billington

O2 Arena, LondonThe statistics alone for this show are mind-boggling. It requires 620 tonnes of sand, involves a cast and crew of 400 and a total of 46 horses, donkeys and ponies. But specta…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:42PM[SHARE]

Wings review " Juliet Stevenson soars in stroke recovery tale by Michael Billington

Young Vic, London Performing 360-degree loops, pummelled by voices and piecing together her shattered speech, Stevenson goes bravely to the limit in this high-concept showJuliet Stevenson mu…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:24AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, September 20, 2017

For Love or Money review " Northern Broadsides strike comedy gold by Michael Billington

Viaduct, Halifax Blake Morrison transposes a corrupt, covetous 18th-century Paris to 1920s Yorkshire in a lively satire directed by and starring Barrie RutterNorthern Broadsides have made a …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:54AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Love Never Dies | Theatre review by Michael Billington

Adelphi, LondonThere is much to enjoy in Andrew Lloyd Webber's new musical. The score is one of the composer's most seductive. Bob Crowley's design and Jack O'Brien's direction have a beauti…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:12PM[SHARE]
Monday, September 18, 2017

Oslo review " the political gets personal as tense peace talks are given epic sweep by Michael Billington

Lyttelton, London In JT Rogers' engrossing play on a historic moment in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in 1993, we are reminded that diplomacy requires duplicityJT Rogers is an Americ…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:06PM[SHARE]
Friday, September 15, 2017

Prism review " Robert Lindsay brings Jack Cardiff's movie memories into focus by Michael Billington

Hampstead theatre, LondonLindsay is magnetic as the celebrated cinematographer, who looks back over his life from Alzheimer's-affected old age in Terry Johnson's moving playJack Cardiff, the…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:18AM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 14, 2017

Boudica review " Gina McKee reigns supreme in Brexit-baiting epic by Michael Billington

Shakespeare's Globe, LondonMcKee brings an imposing stillness to Tristan Bernays's play about the ancient British queen whose uprising is crushed by the RomansGina McKee plays Boudica, the r…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:04AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, September 13, 2017

The Blinding Light review " Howard Brenton imagines Strindberg's inferno by Michael Billington

Jermyn Street theatre, London The Swedish dramatist's life is shown to echo his plays in a new production about his obsession with alchemy and his relationships with three women'Death to poe…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:54AM[SHARE]

Peter Hall: a titan of the theatre and a vulnerable, sensitive man by Michael Billington

In conversations with Hall over 40 years, I encountered a creative powerhouse who exuded confidence yet could be a strangely solitary figurePeter Hall was a man of infinite contradictions. I…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:04AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, September 12, 2017

The Birthday Party " review by Michael Billington

Royal Exchange, ManchesterBlanche McIntyre is one of the flotilla of female directors coming to the forefront of British theatre. But, although she's assembled a cracking cast for this reviv…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:42AM[SHARE]

Sir Peter Hall obituary: powerful force in British theatre by Michael Billington

Creator of the Royal Shakespeare Company who built up the National and championed regional playhousesSir Peter Hall, who has died aged 86, was the single most influential figure in modern Br…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:42AM[SHARE]

The March on Russia review " dreams turn to despair in David Storey's family reunion by Michael Billington

Orange Tree, Richmond In this revival of Storey's 1989 play, set during the Thatcher era, a poignant celebration subtly turns into a state-of-the-nation drama There could no better tribute t…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:42AM[SHARE]

Sir Peter Hall: 'Politicians don't grasp the case for the arts' by Michael Billington

More than any other director, Sir Peter Hall shaped British theatre. As he turns 80, he tells Michael Billington about his doubts about the new RSC building and his dismay at fighting arts c…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:54AM[SHARE]

Angels and demons: the unmissable theatre, comedy and dance of autumn 2017 by Michael Billington, Lyn Gardner, Judith Mackrell and Brian Logan

Hamilton hits London, Bryan Cranston's news anchor goes berserk, Wayne McGregor turns his DNA into dance, Mae Martin revisits her teen addictions and Toyah Willcox is a time-travelling queen…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:12AM[SHARE]
Monday, September 11, 2017

The Knowledge review " Maureen Lipman steers witty cabbie comedy by Michael Billington

Charing Cross theatre, LondonThis adaptation of Jack Rosenthal's TV film brings back the desperate drivers and their sadistic examiner " but does the story belong on stage?Any adaptation has…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:42PM[SHARE]
Friday, September 8, 2017

On the Shore of the Wide World, Royal Exchange, Manchester by Michael Billington

Royal Exchange, ManchesterFamilies lie at the heart of drama. And Simon Stephens' new play, co-commissioned by the National Theatre and the Royal Exchange, offers a sensitive study of three …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:18AM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 7, 2017

Faithful Ruslan: The Story of a Guard Dog review " ingenious allegory with a bite by Michael Billington

Belgrade theatre, Coventry A dazzling ensemble play dogs and chickens, as well as brutal soldiers and their prisoners, in this account of the horrors of the gulagHelena Kaut-Howson is one of…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:48AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Follies review " Sondheim's showbiz stunner returns in breathtaking style by Michael Billington

National Theatre, LondonImelda Staunton is unforgettable in Dominic Cooke's ingenious revival of a musical that perfectly fuses splendour and poetic sadnessAlthough it has legions of admirer…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:04PM[SHARE]
Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Medea review " Carrie Cracknell's version is a tragic force to be reckoned with by Michael Billington

Olivier, LondonHelen McCrory excels in this modern-dress take on Euripides that is alive with complexity and psychological astutenessAfter her success with Ibsen's A Doll's House, Carrie Cra…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:18PM[SHARE]
Monday, September 4, 2017

Rudy's Rare Records review " Lenny Henry's reggae romp has the audience roaring by Michael Billington

Birmingham RepStuffed with gags and overflowing with an easygoing, laid-back liberalism, this comedy about a vinyl-shop owner fighting developers has the feel of a stonking hitIf there is a …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:48PM[SHARE]

All that Chat

2025-2026 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 12, 2025: Call Me Izzy - Studio 54
Sep 16, 2025: Art - Music Box Theatre
Oct 08, 2025: Beetlejuice - Palace Theatre
Nov 13, 2025: Oedipus - Studio 54
Nov 16, 2025: Chess - Imperial Theatre
Mar 23, 2026: Giant - Music Box Theatre
Apr 06, 2026: Becky Shaw - Hayes Theater
Apr 16, 2026: Proof - Booth Theatre
Apr 26, 2026: Drama Desk Cut-Off